Gross domestic product by industry, January 2014
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Released: 2014-03-31
Real gross domestic product rose 0.5% in January. This follows a 0.5% decline in December after five consecutive monthly increases.
The output of goods-producing industries grew 1.0% in January, led by an increase in manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, in mining and oil and gas extraction and in construction. In contrast, the agriculture and forestry sector and utilities declined.
The output of service industries increased 0.3% in January, as most major industrial sectors registered growth. Gains were notable in retail and wholesale trade. The finance and insurance sector, accommodation and food services as well as transportation and warehousing services also increased, while the public sector (education, health and public administration combined) edged up.
Chart 1
Real gross domestic product grows in January
Manufacturing output rises
Manufacturing output rose 2.0% in January, following a 1.9% decline in December. Durable-goods manufacturing grew 2.5%, as almost all major industrial sub-groupings registered increases. Notable gains were recorded in computer and electronic product and machinery manufacturing.
Manufacturing of non-durable goods (+1.5%) also increased in January. There were notable gains in the manufacturing of beverage and tobacco, food as well as plastic and rubber products. In contrast, chemical manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, paper manufacturing were down.
Chart 2
Manufacturing output rises in January
Retail and wholesale trade up
Retail trade rose 1.3% in January, following a 2.3% decline in December. There were notable gains at motor vehicles and parts dealers, building material and garden equipment supplies stores and furniture and home furnishings stores.
Wholesale trade rose 0.7% in January, after decreasing 1.5% in December. The increase was mainly due to gains in the wholesaling of personal and household goods and, to a lesser extent, of building material and supplies. Wholesaling of machinery, equipment and supplies as well as motor vehicles and parts declined.
Mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction increases
Mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction increased 1.2% in January, following a 0.7% decline in December.
Support activities for mining and oil and gas extraction rose 5.8% in January, as both drilling and rigging services were up. Oil and gas extraction increased 0.8% in January. Mining and quarrying (excluding oil and gas extraction) rose 0.4%. Potash mining increased, while metal ore mining and coal mining declined.
Construction increases
After declining 0.8% in December, construction increased 0.7% in January. Residential building construction and repair works as well as engineering construction grew. Non-residential building construction fell.
The output of real estate agents and brokers decreased 4.9% in January, down for a fourth consecutive month, as activity in the home resale market declined.
Other industries
The agriculture and forestry sector declined 1.9% in January.
Utilities fell 1.1% in January, mainly as a result of a decline in electric power generation, transmission and distribution.
The finance and insurance sector grew 0.4% in January, after edging down 0.1% in December. Banking, insurance as well as financial investment services were up.
Transportation and warehousing services edged up 0.1% in January, as a gain in trucking services was partly offset by a decline in air transportation services.
The public sector (education, health and public administration combined) edged up 0.1%.
Chart 3
Main industrial sectors' contribution to the percent change in gross domestic product, January 2014
Note to readers
The monthly gross domestic product (GDP) by industry data at basic prices are chained volume estimates with 2007 as the reference year. This means that the data for each industry and each aggregate are obtained from a chained volume index multiplied by the industry's value added in 2007. The monthly data are benchmarked to annually chained Fisher volume indexes of GDP obtained from the constant-price input-output tables up to the latest input-output tables year (2010).
For the period starting with January 2011, the data are derived by chaining a fixed-weight Laspeyres volume index to the prior period. The fixed weights are 2010 industry prices.
This approach makes the monthly GDP by industry data more comparable with the expenditure-based GDP data, chained quarterly.
All data in this release are seasonally adjusted. For more information on seasonal adjustment, see "Seasonal adjustment and identifying economic trends."
Revisions
With this release of monthly GDP by industry, revisions have been made back to January 2013.
For more information about monthly national GDP by industry, see the System of macroeconomic accounts module on our website.
Data on gross domestic product by industry for February will be released on April 30.
Contact information
For more information, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca).
To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Allan Tomas (613-951-9277), Industry Accounts Division.
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